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>Preface</H1
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><DL
><DT
><B
>Table of Contents</B
></DT
><DT
><A
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>What is <SPAN
CLASS="PRODUCTNAME"
>PostgreSQL</SPAN
>?</A
></DT
><DT
><A
HREF="history.html"
>A Brief History of <SPAN
CLASS="PRODUCTNAME"
>PostgreSQL</SPAN
></A
></DT
><DT
><A
HREF="notation.html"
>Conventions</A
></DT
><DT
><A
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>Further Information</A
></DT
><DT
><A
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>Bug Reporting Guidelines</A
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><P
>  This book is the official documentation of
  <SPAN
CLASS="PRODUCTNAME"
>PostgreSQL</SPAN
>.  It has been written by the
  <SPAN
CLASS="PRODUCTNAME"
>PostgreSQL</SPAN
> developers and other
  volunteers in parallel to the development of the
  <SPAN
CLASS="PRODUCTNAME"
>PostgreSQL</SPAN
> software.  It describes all
  the functionality that the current version of
  <SPAN
CLASS="PRODUCTNAME"
>PostgreSQL</SPAN
> officially supports.
 </P
><P
>  To make the large amount of information about
  <SPAN
CLASS="PRODUCTNAME"
>PostgreSQL</SPAN
> manageable, this book has been
  organized in several parts.  Each part is targeted at a different
  class of users, or at users in different stages of their
  <SPAN
CLASS="PRODUCTNAME"
>PostgreSQL</SPAN
> experience:

  <P
></P
></P><UL
><LI
><P
>     <A
HREF="tutorial.html"
>Part I</A
> is an informal introduction for new users.
    </P
></LI
><LI
><P
>     <A
HREF="sql.html"
>Part II</A
> documents the <ACRONYM
CLASS="ACRONYM"
>SQL</ACRONYM
> query
     language environment, including data types and functions, as well
     as user-level performance tuning.  Every
     <SPAN
CLASS="PRODUCTNAME"
>PostgreSQL</SPAN
> user should read this.
    </P
></LI
><LI
><P
>     <A
HREF="admin.html"
>Part III</A
> describes the installation and
     administration of the server.  Everyone who runs a
     <SPAN
CLASS="PRODUCTNAME"
>PostgreSQL</SPAN
> server, be it for private
     use or for others, should read this part.
    </P
></LI
><LI
><P
>     <A
HREF="client-interfaces.html"
>Part IV</A
> describes the programming
     interfaces for <SPAN
CLASS="PRODUCTNAME"
>PostgreSQL</SPAN
> client
     programs.
    </P
></LI
><LI
><P
>     <A
HREF="server-programming.html"
>Part V</A
> contains information for
     advanced users about the extensibility capabilities of the
     server.  Topics include user-defined data types and
     functions.
    </P
></LI
><LI
><P
>     <A
HREF="reference.html"
>Part VI</A
> contains reference information about
     SQL commands, client and server programs.  This part supports
     the other parts with structured information sorted by command or
     program.
    </P
></LI
><LI
><P
>     <A
HREF="internals.html"
>Part VII</A
> contains assorted information that might be of
     use to <SPAN
CLASS="PRODUCTNAME"
>PostgreSQL</SPAN
> developers.
    </P
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>&nbsp;</TD
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>What is <SPAN
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